one little word

I can hardly believe that another year has passed us by. I’m always baffled at just where all time goes. And you know it’s going by fast when your kids think it is too! Time went by forever slow when we were kids!

I’m not sure how long Ali Edwards has been doing ‘One Little Word’, but I know I enjoy playing along. It’s kind of a goal. Nothing ‘defined’ per se, but rather, it’s all about what do you want to do for the year. A mantra of sorts.

And as I look back at my One Little Word for 2011, I knew I picked the right one for the year. It was….learn.

I learned that I could survive two whole years without my boy.

I learned that no matter how tough something may be, if you keep a positive attitude and be grateful for what you do have, you can always be happy and you always have everything. And after it’s over? Look at what you learned from the experienced because it will make you a better person.

I learned the basics of many web creation programs.

I learned that we could actually own a dog . . . AND let it in the house.

I learned that I could not do what I do without my fabulous design team. They inspire me with every share.

I learned several new recipes that are just to die for.

….and that’s just a sampling of what I learned.

And now, it’s 2012 . . . time for a new word.

What do I see for myself + my family?

How do I want to improve?

Where do I want to be when 2012 is over?

There’s just been one word that keeps popping in my head.

A word with so many possibilities.

A word that gives me direction at this stage in my life and in my work.

So here it is:

Grow in work.

I have so many ideas and it never seems like I have enough time. I feel like I need to take work to the next level, but still keeping in mind, I don’t have to do it all at once…one little dream at a time. I want to grow in creativity. I want to grow in knowledge. There’s so much growing to do in this subject. I’m excited to see where this one will take me (+you!).

Grow in being a better mother+wife.

You’d think after almost 24 years in this arena that you’d have it pretty nailed down. Eh. I don’t think so. In fact, last night I was having a conversation with a friend last night—at her 40th birthday party—and she was told by someone that her mother was done being a mother . . . that her kids are raised . . . that her job is done. Both our responses was “You are never done at being mother.” And if you’re never done with being a mom, then there is always room for improvement, I say.

While I do feel like I’ve been a good mom in general, I feel like I’ve been failing as a mom when it comes to taking care of the house and cooking dinner. For the past few years work always seems to be in the front seat. Need to change that. Simplifying is also part of working on this goal.

Grow in prioritizing.

I think this is where I can make everything come together. I think that if I can make my home a higher priority, giving it some time every day, keeping it organized and clean, that everything else will come together.

For the past couple months, I’ve had the saying ‘A stitch in time saves nine’ in my head. I always knew what it meant, but never really thought about what it really meant. If you take care of the small task now—a minute of your time, you won’t have a monster task later—usually resulting in waaaay more of your time if you’d just done it in the first place. In other words, stay ahead of the game. And when it comes to my home life, this has always taken the back seat and I’ve definitely done my share of ‘nine stitches’ vs. ‘one’ (it’s actually more like 137 stitches to 1 ;) ).

While I don’t necessarily believe in the quote, ‘A goal not written is just a wish’, I’m actually going to write down my plan.

I think it all starts with spending one hour each morning getting the house in order and doing whatever cleaning that needs to be done. Who cares if so-n-so left it there, I’m just gonna pick it up rather than wait for them to do it—or put their items in their pile to take care of when they come home. The house is still clean, but they can still do the putting away. Maybe if I lead by example, my kids will follow.

I think if I have a house in order, my work will be in order and then my life will be in order. Result? A better mom, a better business woman (that’s weird to call myself that—lol), and a better prioritizer (yeah, it’s a word).

I am really looking forward to growing in all these areas—plus a few others—this year.

Now, if I could only get a few of those ‘nine stitches’ done in my office, then I’d really be off to a good start. ;)

9 Comments

Kerri, I haven’t played along with the one word before but reading your post today has hit a chord with me. Prioritizing is something I also need to do in my life. The house is the one thing that always seems to get left (don’t get me wrong, it’s not a pigsty but it could be better) and then it feels like a huge task. I should take a leaf out of your book with the hour a day for cleaning/tidying and staying on top of stuff. I may not have a word but I think this is one I’ll need to work on! Thanks for sharing :) x

I want to make gentle changes in my life this year but the word change scare to beejeebers out of me…so better fit the bill. I want to be a better wife, better employee, in better shape etc. I want to come out on the other side of this year with a better feeling of self.

I have participated in OLW since 2007. In the beginning I chose a word that I thought would carry me into a more purposeful life. I did manage to keep my word in mind throughout the year but it wasn’t until 2010 when my word “change” saw me actually putting more effort into the process and because I did see positive changes 2011’s word was MORE. I wanted to see and do more than in years previous and boy did I! So many, many good things happened because I began living with my word in mind, and because I allowed my words to choose me instead of the other way around. My word word for 2012 is “Intention”. I want to live with more intention than in the past. All areas of my life can use a little more intention in them!

I’m feeling very much the way you are about what needs to
be done, but have chosen ‘now’ as my word. I need to stop
putting things off and start doing things NOW. (Especially
if it is something I am reluctant to tackle.)

OMG – your third point in your post could be me! Last year my word was focus…. on the things I had let go and create more issues. I needed to get some clarity on the important things and focus on them. I feel just having that one word did let me place some focus on those things and gain some momentum and traction… and that led to this year’s word: “do” – all about doing the things that will let me take those first steps from 2011 further in 2012… housework being one of them :)